Table Of ContentFULL OF HOPE AND FEAR
FULL OF HOPE
AND
R
FEA
the great war letters
of an oxford family
edited by
margaret bonfiglioli
and
james munson
1
3
Great Clarendon Street, Oxford, ox2 6dp,
United Kingdom
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© Introduction, Selection, Editing and Notes: Margaret Bonfiglioli and
James Munson 2014
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First Edition published in 2014
Impression: 1
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The editors have received generous help in their researches from many
individuals and organizations, especially libraries and archive collec-
tions, and are grateful for the friendly welcome, patience, and interest of
the following people and institutions, libraries, and archives:
In Cambridge, Michael Frankl, Chairman of the Beth Shalom Syna-
gogue, Barry Landy of Fitzwilliam College, Val Nurse, of Beth Shalom
Administrators, and Kate Senter of KVT BusinessCare.
In Chatham, the staff and volunteers at the Medway Archives and
Local Studies Centre.
In Chennai, Sivaraj Munusamy of OKS Group, Dr S. Narayanan,
Research Fellow, Institute of Advanced Study and Research, University of
Madras, and Professor Vedagiri Shanmugasundaram of the University of
Madras.
In Duxford, Martin Boswell at the Imperial War Museum.
In Gillingham, David Howlett, Membership Secretary of the
Gillingham Baptist Church.
In London, Jane Dawson, Friends’ House, Euston Road, Peter Elliott,
Senior Keeper, Department of Research and Information Services, Royal
Air Force Museum Hendon, David Jacobs, Chairman of the Jewish His-
torical Society of England, Hero Johnston at The Heatherley School of
Fine Art, Hugh Petrie at Hendon Library, East Barnet, and Prof. Derek
Taylor, OBE.
In Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the staff at the Tyne and Wear Archives.
In Oxford, Roger Ainsworth, Sally Jones, and Jessica Hughes at St
Catherine’s College, Elizabeth Boardman, archivist at Brasenose College,
v
Acknowledgements
Geoffrey Fouquet, Acting Archivist of St Peter’s College, the Revd Peter
Hewis, former Chaplain of Harris Manchester College, Timothy Metcalfe
at the Oxford Times and the Oxford Mail, Audrey Mullender, Valerie Moises,
Ray King, and Kate Beeby at Ruskin College, Rebecca Roseff at Magdalen
College School, Elizabeth Sloan and Frances Stott, Librarians at the
Oxford High School for Girls, David Smith at St Anne’s College, Gay
Sturt, archivist of the Dragon School, Michael Woods at the Bodleian
Library, and the staffs at Oxford City Library and the Oxfordshire History
Centre.
We are also most grateful to the following individuals for their advice,
encouragement, and assistance: Lionel Bolton, Chris, Catriona, and
Amanda Bonfiglioli, Martin Ceadel, Nicholas Chadwick, Fiona Clarke,
David and Sue Cockram, Tony Essan, Gabrielle Fletcher, Tony Hancox,
Ismene and Fenella Howse, Alexander Kerr, Vanessa Mildred, Richard
Mullen, Susan Partridge, Ann Pasternak-Slater, Keith Randall, Charles
Sale, Martin, Michael, and Nicolas Slater, Clover Southwell, Sarah Thomas,
Eithne and Adrian Thornton, and Priscilla Tolkien.
We are, finally, deeply indebted to the Readers at Oxford University
Press who recognized the importance of these letters and who made
many valuable suggestions, and to our editor, Matthew Cotton, for his
unfailing encouragement and assistance. We are grateful to those who
have allowed us to use material of which they have the copyright. In a few
cases the editors have been unable as yet to trace the current copyright
holders even after considerable detective work. Despite all efforts, in
some seven cases where the writers’ full names are known (Maurice
Adams, Violette Bossy, Joan and Maude George, the Revd G. H. Grinling,
L. R. Sofield and M. P. Wilcocks) our researches have yet to discover
descendants. The editors would greatly appreciate any information as to
their whereabouts.
vi
CONTENTS
List of Illustrations xxi
Preface xxiii
Introduction xxvii
Notes on the Text and on Currency xliii
Correspondents and People Frequently Mentioned in the Letters xlvii
THE LETTERS
1. Gilbert to Violet, 31 December 1915 5
2. Gilbert to Violet, 1 January 1916 5
3. Patrick to his father, 1 January [1916] 7
4. Gilbert to Eliot and Patrick, 7 January 1916 7
5. Gilbert to Violet, 13 January 1916 8
6. Owen to his father, [January 1916] 9
7. Gilbert to Owen, 14 January 1916 10
8. Gilbert to Violet, 6 and 9 February 1916 11
9. Gilbert to Owen, 9 February 1916 from Hotel
Connemara, Madras 11
10. Gilbert to Owen, 9 February 1916 from the Madras Club 12
11. Gilbert to Eliot, [9 February 1916] 12
12. Violette Bossy to Violet, 10 February [1916] 13
13. Owen to his father, [February 1916] 14
14. Gilbert to Violet, 18 February 1916 14
15. Gilbert to Eliot and Patrick, 18 February 1916 15
16. Gilbert to Violet, [18 February 1916?] 16
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contents
17. Gilbert to Violet, 22 and 24 March 1916 16
18. Gilbert to Violet, 29 March 1916 from Palni 17
19. Gilbert to Violet, 12 April 1916 from Madura 18
20. Gilbert to Owen, 22 April 1916 19
21. Gilbert to Eliot and Patrick, 5 May 1916
from Gray’s Hotel, Coonoor 20
22. Gilbert to Owen, 11 May 1916 20
23. Gilbert to Owen, 19 May 1916 21
24. Gilbert to Owen, 25 May 1916 22
25. Gilbert to Owen, 8 June 1916 22
26. Gilbert to Violet, 15 June 1916 23
27. Gilbert to Violet, 22 June 1916 24
28. Gilbert to Violet, 28 June 1916 25
29. Gilbert to Owen, 21 July 1916 26
30. Gilbert to Violet, 21 July 1916 27
31. Gilbert to Owen, 29 July 1916 28
32. Gilbert to Violet, 4 August 1916 30
33. Owen to his mother, 6 August 1916 from Moor Farm 30
34. Owen to his father, 9 August 1916 from Moor Farm 31
35. Gilbert to Eliot and Pat, 12 August 1916 31
36. Gilbert to Owen, 12 August 1916 32
37. Owen to his father, 15 August 1916 from Moor Farm 33
38. Gilbert to Violet, 16 August 1916 33
39. Gilbert to Owen, 19 August 1916 34
40. Owen to his mother, 20 August 1916 from Moor Farm 34
41. Gilbert to Owen, 8 September 1916 35
42. Owen to his father, 21 September 1916 36
43. Gilbert to Patrick, [September 1916] 36
44. Gilbert to Owen, 22 September 1916 37
45. Gilbert to Owen, 6 October 1916 37
46. Gilbert to Owen, 27 October 1916 38
47. Gilbert to Owen, 4 November 1916 39
48. Memo 6–7 November 1916 40
viii
contents
49. Gilbert to Owen, 18 November 1916 41
50. Gilbert to Violet, 6 December 1916 42
51. Gilbert to Owen, 17 February 1917 43
52. Gilbert to Gertrude Slater, 19 February 1917 44
53. Gilbert to Violet, 19 February 1917 45
54. Gilbert to Owen, 20 [?] February 1917 47
55. Violet to Owen, [May 1917] 48
56. Gilbert to Owen, 21 May 1917 from Coulsdon, Surrey 48
57. Owen to his father, [12 July 1917] 49
58. Violet to Gilbert, [July 1917?] 49
59. Gilbert to Owen, 28 August 1917 50
60. Eliot to his father, 17 September [1917] 51
61. Gilbert to Violet, 22 September 1917 51
62. Gilbert to Eliot and Patrick, 22 September 1917 from
Travellers Bungalow, Kumbakonam 53
63. Gilbert to Violet, 29 September 1917 54
64. Owen to his father, 3 October 1917 55
65. Violet to Gilbert, [mid-October 1917] 56
66. Gilbert to Violet, 10 November 1917
from Kobe Lodge, Royapettah, Madras 57
67. Gilbert to Violet, 13 November 1917 from
Kobe Lodge, Royapettah, Madras 58
68. Gilbert to Owen, 14 November 1917 60
69. Gilbert to Owen, 16 November 1917 61
70. Owen to his father, 21 November 1917 61
71. Owen to his mother, [24 November 1917]
from Shalem Lodge, Newark-on-Trent 62
72. Owen to his father, 5 December 1917 63
73. Violet to Gilbert, 7 December 1917 63
74. Owen to his father, 9 January 1918 64
75. Owen to his mother, 14 January 1918 65
76. Violet to Owen, 14 and 15 January 1918 66
77. Joyce Cockram to Owen, 22 January 1918 from Oxford 66
ix
